Commercial interiors repainted without closing the floor.
Walls, ceilings and circulation areas repainted in planned shifts, with partition joints, chalky distemper and scuffed dado lines dealt with before any colour goes on, so the floor comes back to you finished, not half covered.
- Free site inspection
- Written, itemised quote
- 1-year workmanship warranty
- Same-day callback
At a glance
Can commercial interior painting be done without shutting the business?
Yes, on most sites. We phase the work by area and run shifts at night or over weekends, using low-odour water-based emulsion where people are still working nearby. Dust screens separate the live area from the working one, and materials move through agreed lift slots so nothing crosses an occupied floor during working hours. Each zone is cleaned, its protection lifted and its workstations put back before the next one opens up.
When this is the answer, and when it is not.
Sending you to the wrong service wastes your money and our time. This is how to tell.
This is likely right if
- The space stays in use and work has to happen at night, over weekends or floor by floor
- Corridors, lobbies and lift areas are scuffed at trolley and shoulder height while the workspaces themselves are sound
- You are handing back a leased floor and it must be returned to the landlord's specified finish
- A brand refresh or new tenant fit-out needs one consistent scheme across mixed substrates
Something else comes first if
- Walls are staining or blistering below AC ducting, a plumbing riser or an external wall, the source has to be traced and stopped first, or the new coat lifts with the old one
- The fit-out is still moving, partitions being shifted, ceilings open, cabling being pulled. Painting before the last trade leaves means paying to paint the same wall twice
- The ceiling is mineral-fibre acoustic tile, the perforations are what absorb sound, and paint bridges them and stiffens the face, so a coated ceiling gets harder and louder rather than fresher. Replacement is usually the honest answer instead
What the service includes.
Condition survey and specification
We walk each floor with your facilities team and record substrate area by area, cement plaster, gypsum partition, POP ceiling, previously distempered stairwell, and write what each of them needs.
Shift plan and site access
Night, weekend or zone-by-zone working agreed in advance, with gate passes, worker details, service lift slots and material movement timings cleared with building management.
Protection of fit-out and services
Workstations, racks, cabling, access readers, glazing and flooring sheeted and taped. Sprinkler heads, detectors and statutory signage are masked, never coated.
Joint repair and levelling
Tape joints and nail pops on partitions cut back and refilled, cracks at column-to-partition junctions opened out, chalky distemper scraped off, then putty and sanding to bring the surface true.
Primer and finish coats
Primer or sealer chosen for what's actually on the wall, then finish coats to the agreed count, low-odour water-based emulsion wherever the floor beside us stays occupied.
Snag list and handover record
A joint walkthrough produces a written snag list closed with your facilities team, plus a record of what was applied where and a written warranty setting out its conditions.
Not included, or quoted separately
- Isolating or reinstating fire detection and sprinkler systems, that stays with your building's system vendor, and we work to their sign-off
- Ceiling grid work, mineral-fibre or acoustic tile replacement, and any fire-rated board installation
- Dismantling and refitting workstations, partitions, glazing film, signage or AV equipment
- Electrical, data cabling and anything behind a partition or above a ceiling
- Waterproofing and damp source treatment, and post-work deep cleaning of flooring, carpet or upholstery
The sequence.
Site survey and measurement
We measure by surface: walls, ceilings, soffits, bulkheads, columns and stairwells, each counted separately, and note condition against each. The quotation is built from that, not from carpet area.
Method statement and permissions
Shift timings, access routes, permits, worker lists and which services need covering, agreed with your facilities team and the building management before we mobilise.
Sample panel and approval
A panel painted on your own wall and viewed under your actual lighting. Core areas with no daylight read a shade very differently from the entrance lobby.
Protect, then prepare
Sheeting, masking and dust screens go up first. Then scraping, joint repair, putty and sanding, with dust kept off the live side of the screen.
Apply in planned zones
Primer and finish coats applied zone by zone to the agreed coat count, each zone cleared, cleaned and handed back in a usable state rather than left open.
Snag, close and document
We walk the floor with your team, close the snags, put back what we moved, and issue the completion record with the warranty conditions stated.
What moves the price on this job.
We do not publish a rate, because it would change once someone measured your property. These are the variables that decide it.
- Measured surface area: walls, ceilings, bulkheads, columns and stairwell soffits, not the floor plate
- How much of the work must run outside business hours, since every shift is a separate mobilisation
- The substrate mix, as gypsum partitions, cement plaster and old oil-bound distemper each need different preparation
- Whether furniture, workstations and racks stay in place and have to be worked around
- Access equipment needed for double-height lobbies, atria and stairwell soffits
- Washability grade in circulation areas, and the extra coats a deep corporate shade demands
Commercial Interior Painting — your questions.
Can you work while our offices are occupied?
Yes, on most sites. Where a floor stays occupied we use low-odour water-based emulsion, screen the working area off, and keep material movement to agreed lift slots and timings. Solvent-based enamel on doors, grilles and railings is different, it needs the area cleared and ventilated, so that portion is scheduled for a night or weekend shift. The sequence is agreed with your facilities team before we mobilise.
Will the work set off our fire alarm?
Dust from sanding and mist from spraying can trigger smoke detectors, so this is planned rather than discovered on site. Detectors are covered only when your fire system vendor instructs it, and uncovered again within the same shift. Sprinkler heads are masked and never coated, because paint on a head changes how it responds to heat. We don't isolate any life-safety system ourselves.
Our existing paint is chalky and rubs off on hands. Does that matter?
It matters more than the colour choice does. Old oil-bound distemper and cement paint chalk as they age, leaving a powdery layer that isn't really attached to anything. Emulsion rolled straight over it bonds to the powder rather than the wall, and lifts away with that powder later. We scrape back to a sound surface, wash off the residue, and seal with a primer suited to what remains underneath.
Will our brand shade look the same in the core areas as it does in the lobby?
We mix to a specified shade reference and put a sample panel on your own wall before anything is committed. This matters in commercial interiors because core areas often have no daylight at all, a shade approved near the glazing can read quite differently under ceiling LED panels a few metres in. Deep brand shades over a pale existing base usually need an extra coat, which is stated in the quotation rather than raised mid-job.
The cracks along our partition joints keep coming back. Will painting fix them?
Those cracks are usually movement, not paint failure. A gypsum partition and the RCC column or beam it meets settle and expand at different rates, so the line between them opens again whatever you fill it with. Where the joint itself is sound we cut it out, re-tape and re-skim. Where it isn't, the honest answer is a designed movement joint or bead detail, building work rather than painting, and we'll show you the junction and say so.
Related services
- Office PaintingThe same work planned specifically around cabins, workstations and meeting rooms.
- Dampness and Seepage TreatmentIf interior walls are staining or blistering, this has to be settled first.
- Commercial Exterior PaintingFor the facade and common areas when the whole premises is being refreshed.
Let us look at your walls first.
Tell us about the property and we will set up a free colour and wall inspection. You get a written, itemised quotation afterwards, with no obligation to go ahead.
- We call you back the same day to get a picture of the property and the surfaces.
- We agree a time and come out for the free inspection.
- You get the written scope and itemised quotation.
- Nothing starts until you approve it.